New chair lines up Volusia advisers

Former opponent Ted Doran tops list

Published: Saturday, December 1, 2012 at 4:33 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, December 1, 2012 at 4:33 p.m.

Though he could be appointed to office this week, newly elected Volusia County Chair Jason Davis won't get to appoint his own cabinet like a president — that's not how the county works.

But Davis has assembled what might be the next-best thing: a team of advisers who'll be helping him make the transition from outsider and political unknown to the new face of Volusia's government.

That team includes one of his recent opponents: Ted Doran, the Daytona Beach attorney who also ran against former Councilman Carl Persis for the chairman's seat.

"He's a lawyer, and a good one," Davis said of Doran, who finished third and out of contention in the August primary. "Just because we ran a campaign fighting each other on the campaign trail doesn't mean we can't have a coffee or a beer together."

"I've told him I'm at his disposal," Doran said. "Anything that he needs help with or is interested in getting my perspective on, I'm ready and willing to provide it. ... I'm here to make him successful; I'm not pushing any agenda. It's his agenda; he's the chairman."

Davis has yet to run his first County Council meeting (that might happen Thursday), and he can't take any official actions unless Gov. Rick Scott appoints him to fill the few weeks remaining in Frank Bruno's term after he resigned in an unsuccessful run for the state Senate. The governor's appointment office said Friday there's still no timetable for Davis' appointment.

But the job is already setting in: Davis attended a two-hour Volusia Transportation Planning Organization meeting last week, and he says he's been traveling around the county to meet with officials and residents as county chair-elect. His once relatively unknown face is getting recognized now — he gets stopped frequently, as he did recently eating lunch at a Wendy's in Ormond Beach.

Besides Doran, the advisory group that met with Davis shortly after Election Day included:

- Margie Patchett, executive director of Volusia Tax Reform, a local government watchdog group critical of Volusia's property tax rates. Patchett ran for the council's at-large seat in 2010.

- Bruce Teeters, a former senior vice president at Consolidated Tomoka Land Co., which owns and develops more than 11,000 acres in the Daytona Beach area.

- Big John, the former Volusia County Councilman and local radio talk-show host.

- Bill Tavernier, a Deltona resident who filed a campaign finance complaint against Persis and became a Davis supporter.

- April Smith, Davis' campaign manager — an Ormond Beach woman with a background in accounting whom Davis says he'd like to see hired by the county.

"I'm working with everybody, to be honest with you," Davis said. "I'm working with (County Manager Jim) Dinneen, of course, staff, local citizens and mayors, transportation authority people. ... We've got a lot of people saying, 'Hey, this is a great idea,' or 'This is a bad idea.' "

But Doran, who's hosting a meet-and-greet event at his law office after Davis' swearing-in, has become one of his closest advisers. It's a role he wouldn't have if Persis won — the bitter primary race divided Persis and Doran, while Davis coasted, mostly unscathed.

So Davis' surprise win in the general election restored some of the political influence Doran might have lost finishing third in the primary.

"There were a lot of parallel issues in the campaign," Doran said (both Davis and Doran, for example, favored moving control of the beach from the Beach Patrol to the Sheriff's Office). "I think he observed that, so as a result, I've consulted with him on some of those points, just to give him a perspective and help him formulate his policies."

Davis said he hasn't consulted with Persis, or even spoken with him since he called to concede on election night.

One of the "transition team" members isn't contributing much anymore — Big John said he felt his advice (particularly on Davis' pitch to reduce the county gas tax and sell publicly owned land) went unheard.

"They asked us to help him and give him advice," John said. "My first advice was back off the gas tax — that didn't work. I told him back off the public lands — that didn't work. I told him there are a lot bigger fish out there."

Davis' hope, meanwhile, to get his campaign manager hired by the county won't be up to him. The county chair doesn't have the power to hire employees, but Davis took Smith's resume to the personnel department and recommended her for a job in finance. "That's the beautiful thing about the county charter," Davis said. "I don't hire anybody."

"The woman stood behind me, and she was very beneficial to the campaign," Davis said. "I would love to see her in a position in county government. I don't think she's going to be working with me as closely as she has been. ... But it's always good to take care of the people that take care of you. That's human nature."

Volusia officials initially said Davis would be appointed in time for Thursday's meeting, but Davis said Friday that delays in his paperwork have left that in doubt. If not appointed to office early, he'd take office in January.

<p>Though he could be appointed to office this week, newly elected Volusia County Chair Jason Davis won't get to appoint his own cabinet like a president &mdash; that's not how the county works. </p><p>But Davis has assembled what might be the next-best thing: a team of advisers who'll be helping him make the transition from outsider and political unknown to the new face of Volusia's government. </p><p>That team includes one of his recent opponents: Ted Doran, the Daytona Beach attorney who also ran against former Councilman Carl Persis for the chairman's seat. </p><p>"He's a lawyer, and a good one," Davis said of Doran, who finished third and out of contention in the August primary. "Just because we ran a campaign fighting each other on the campaign trail doesn't mean we can't have a coffee or a beer together." </p><p>"I've told him I'm at his disposal," Doran said. "Anything that he needs help with or is interested in getting my perspective on, I'm ready and willing to provide it. ... I'm here to make him successful; I'm not pushing any agenda. It's his agenda; he's the chairman." </p><p>Davis has yet to run his first County Council meeting (that might happen Thursday), and he can't take any official actions unless Gov. Rick Scott appoints him to fill the few weeks remaining in Frank Bruno's term after he resigned in an unsuccessful run for the state Senate. The governor's appointment office said Friday there's still no timetable for Davis' appointment. </p><p>But the job is already setting in: Davis attended a two-hour Volusia Transportation Planning Organization meeting last week, and he says he's been traveling around the county to meet with officials and residents as county chair-elect. His once relatively unknown face is getting recognized now &mdash; he gets stopped frequently, as he did recently eating lunch at a Wendy's in Ormond Beach. </p><p>Besides Doran, the advisory group that met with Davis shortly after Election Day included:</p><p><b>- </b>Margie Patchett, executive director of Volusia Tax Reform, a local government watchdog group critical of Volusia's property tax rates. Patchett ran for the council's at-large seat in 2010.</p><p><b>- </b>Stan Escudero and Tony Ledbetter, leaders of the local Republican Executive Committee that supported Davis' campaign.</p><p><b>- </b>Bruce Teeters, a former senior vice president at Consolidated Tomoka Land Co., which owns and develops more than 11,000 acres in the Daytona Beach area.</p><p><b>- </b>Big John, the former Volusia County Councilman and local radio talk-show host.</p><p><b>- </b>Bill Tavernier, a Deltona resident who filed a campaign finance complaint against Persis and became a Davis supporter.</p><p><b>- </b>April Smith, Davis' campaign manager &mdash; an Ormond Beach woman with a background in accounting whom Davis says he'd like to see hired by the county. </p><p>"I'm working with everybody, to be honest with you," Davis said. "I'm working with (County Manager Jim) Dinneen, of course, staff, local citizens and mayors, transportation authority people. ... We've got a lot of people saying, 'Hey, this is a great idea,' or 'This is a bad idea.' " </p><p>But Doran, who's hosting a meet-and-greet event at his law office after Davis' swearing-in, has become one of his closest advisers. It's a role he wouldn't have if Persis won &mdash; the bitter primary race divided Persis and Doran, while Davis coasted, mostly unscathed. </p><p>So Davis' surprise win in the general election restored some of the political influence Doran might have lost finishing third in the primary. </p><p>"There were a lot of parallel issues in the campaign," Doran said (both Davis and Doran, for example, favored moving control of the beach from the Beach Patrol to the Sheriff's Office). "I think he observed that, so as a result, I've consulted with him on some of those points, just to give him a perspective and help him formulate his policies." </p><p>Davis said he hasn't consulted with Persis, or even spoken with him since he called to concede on election night. </p><p>One of the "transition team" members isn't contributing much anymore &mdash; Big John said he felt his advice (particularly on Davis' pitch to reduce the county gas tax and sell publicly owned land) went unheard. </p><p>"They asked us to help him and give him advice," John said. "My first advice was back off the gas tax &mdash; that didn't work. I told him back off the public lands &mdash; that didn't work. I told him there are a lot bigger fish out there." </p><p>Davis' hope, meanwhile, to get his campaign manager hired by the county won't be up to him. The county chair doesn't have the power to hire employees, but Davis took Smith's resume to the personnel department and recommended her for a job in finance. "That's the beautiful thing about the county charter," Davis said. "I don't hire anybody." </p><p>"The woman stood behind me, and she was very beneficial to the campaign," Davis said. "I would love to see her in a position in county government. I don't think she's going to be working with me as closely as she has been. ... But it's always good to take care of the people that take care of you. That's human nature." </p><p>Volusia officials initially said Davis would be appointed in time for Thursday's meeting, but Davis said Friday that delays in his paperwork have left that in doubt. If not appointed to office early, he'd take office in January.</p>